Denver reporter says she was told not to ask Romney about Akin or abortion

Holly Bailey

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The Ticket•August 23, 2012

A Denver television reporter says Mitt Romney's campaign instructed her not to ask the candidate questions about the controversy over Missouri Rep. Todd Akin's comments on rape or the debate over abortion during an interview she had with Romney Thursday.

Shaun Boyd, a reporter for CBS affiliate KCNC, told viewers of the campaign's ground rules before the station aired footage of her interview with the presumptive Republican nominee. President Barack Obama's re-election campaign quickly blasted that video to reporters.

"The one stipulation to the interview was that I not ask him about abortion or Todd Akin," Boyd said.

Asked for comment, a Romney aide, who declined to be named, told Yahoo News, "This is not how we operate. The matter is being addressed."

Boyd did agree with the stipulation and proceeded with the interview, in which Romney touted his energy policies and talked about health care reform.

Romney defended his opposition to a subsidy for wind energy companies—a major issue in Colorado and Iowa, where wind energy is a major source of jobs.

"At some point, I think all energy sources need to stand on their own two feet," Romney told KCNC. "I would look to see leveling of the playing field."

In a nod to Akin's political troubles, Romney was asked if the possibility of losing the Missouri Senate seat would change his position on trying to repeal Obama's health care law. Romney indicated it would not. At the same time, he defended the health care law he passed as governor of Massachusetts, suggesting it was a better law than the one Obama passed.

"My health care plan I put in place in my state has everyone insured, but we didn't go out and raise taxes on people and have an unelected board tell people what kind of health care they can have," Romney said.